Problem with Pidgin/MSN

Hi,
I've been using Ubuntu and Pidgin for a few months now, and I am horrible when it comes to computers. Here's my problem: I'm trying to sign into my MSN account using Pidgin, but Pidgin won't let me and it's acting the same as it does when I'm not connected to the internet. This problem started while I was in the middle of talking to friends, and there was no problem before is just suddenly stopped working. I am connected to the internet, and I've tried every that I can think of, turning Pidgin on and off, restarting my computer, turning it completely off and then back on, and nothing has worked. Please help me!

Same thing here since this morning on Ubuntu 8.10.
But I can still connet to msn on a windows xp pc on the same network without any trouble.
I also activated the debug window on pidgin and I've seen it's not a connection issue but an adddress book error:

there is a very simple solution:install msn-pecan in synaptic package manager, restart pidgin, create new account (WLM) and fill in your msn messenger details (may not work if u didnt delete your old msn messenger account)...worked like a charm for me....